Acorn Influence, Inc.

Canaccord Genuity Advises Influencer Marketing Agency Acorn Influence on its Sale to Digital Marketing Agency New Engen

Merger to Accelerate Expansion of Digital Marketing Capabilities for Both Agencies and their Global Client Bases

Canaccord Genuity is pleased to announce it has advised Acorn Influence, LLC, a leading influencer marketing agency that uses product placements and endorsements from social media creators to drive accountable growth for its clients, on its sale to digital marketing agency New Engen. Acorn Influence was previously a portfolio company of NewRoad Capital Partners; New Engen is a portfolio company of Insignia Capital Group.

Founded in 2014, Acorn Influence has developed a unique approach in influencer marketing, producing top-quality influencer content and full content usage rights for the agency’s clients. Based in Rogers, Arkansas, Acorn Influence represents a diverse network of global influencers who are engaged via the agency’s proprietary platform, while also supporting leading global advertisers and maintaining deep partnerships with major retailers.

Born digital, tech-forward, data-powered, and innovation-driven, New Engen is a growth-obsessed, integrated marketing agency with deep, industry-shaping expertise across media, creative, market research, and analytics. New Engen partners with the world's most innovative brands to accelerate the execution of winning ideas in a rapidly shifting market to achieve breakthrough results.

The addition of Acorn Influence’s capabilities allows Seattle-based New Engen to tap into one of the fastest growing segments in the digital marketing ecosystem, while Acorn Influence will benefit from New Engen's deep media, creative, and analytics expertise to meet the needs of increasingly performance-oriented shopper marketers. Acorn's influencer network, best-in-class technology, and ability to produce breakthrough content make the agency a perfect fit for New Gen’s vision to become a global leader in accountable marketing services, since, as performance and influencer marketing increasingly merge, there is significant potential for the combined agencies’ expertise across content development, digital media, technology, and analytics to accelerate growth for the businesses’ clients. Further, Acorn Influence’s high-quality content and consumer packaged goods (CPG) retail knowledge base, combined with New Engen's deep media and eCommerce expertise, is a powerful combination to meet the demands of increasingly performance-oriented shopper marketers.

The merger comes on the heels of a significant equity investment by Insignia Capital Group in New Engen in December 2021 to help accelerate the fast-growing digital marketing agency's next stage of growth and expand its service offerings. Acorn Influence investor NewRoad Capital Partners will continue to be an investor in the combined business. Myra Dallas, CEO of Acorn Influence, has joined the New Engen Board.

Canaccord Genuity, with a team led by John Prunier, Matthew Kratter, and Peter Sullivan, served as the exclusive financial advisor to Acorn Influence and NewRoad Capital.